The IMG Junior Golf Tour was developed to fill a key niche in junior golf, the IMG Junior Golf Tour provides an elite setting for junior golfers to compete and gain exposure to college golf, professional golf, national junior rankings and athletic excellence.
Held in Florida every December, and open to boys and girls ages 11-18, the the IMG Academy Junior World Florida Challengeis a qualification and invitation only event featuring an international field of over 200 players.News
USF Commit Correa comes out on top at Rio Pinar
USF commit Correa comes out on top at Rio Pinar
The IMG Junior Golf Tour gets underway at Orlando’s Rio Pinar
Claudio Correa win Boys 15-18 division; YiYuan Liu victorious in Girls 15-18 division; Ryan Hicks wins playoff in Boys 11-14 division; Amy Zhang comes out on top in Girls 11-14 division
BRADENTON, Fla. (February 4, 2014) - The IMG Junior Golf Tour got underway at Rio Pinar Country Club in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 1-2. It was the Tour’s second time to visit Rio Pinar after a visit in 2012, and the event attracted 87 players from six states and 11 countries. The second day saw a flurry of low scores, with Linus Lo of Heathrow, Fla. and Thailand’s Veerapat Bhasavanich tying for the low round, each scoring five-under 67 on the final day. However, it would not be enough to overcome Chile’s Claudio Correa, who shot consistently with rounds of 70, 69 (-5) to edge out the field by a single stroke for his first Tour win of the season, and second of his career.
“It felt good to win one and shoot two rounds under par,” remarked Correa after the win. “I didn’t know it was going to be so tight at the end with the two 67s that came in.”
Meanwhile, the Girls 15-18 Division saw YiYuan Liu of Bradenton, Fla. shoot a final round 70 (-2) to take first with a four-over 148. Her strong finish in the second round allowed her to edge out second place finisher, South Korea’s Annie Kim, by two strokes.
Other winners included Ryan Hicks of Clearwater, Fla. winning the Boys 11-14 division in a playoff on the 10th hole against Italy’s Amadeo Figus after each player finished with scores of four-over 148. The Girls 11-14 division was taken by Amy Zhang of Lake Mary, Fla. with solid rounds of 76, 79 to eke out a one-stroke win over China’s Cindy Kou.
The event at Rio Pinar was recognized by the Golfweek/Sagarin Junior Rankings, and AJGA Performance Based Entry was awarded to the top-five boys in the 15-18 division, and the Girls 15-18 champion. The IMG Junior Golf Tour returns to action at The Club at Savannah Harbor in Savannah, Ga., Feb. 15-16.
For full results, visit the IMG Junior Golf Tour leaderboard by clicking HERE.
